Heart of Islay 2.0

Book Club met for cocktails tonight at Conduit in the Mission, and as soon as I walked in, Jen Maiser handed me a drink to taste. I loved it…to her surprise. “You like drinks that taste like an ashtray?” she asked.

Indeed, I do. At least, when that smoky flavor is coming on Islay-style, I do.

Reza made me my own copy, and gave me a separate taste of the key ingredient: Black Bottle 10-year Scotch. It’s the only blended whiskey that contains all the seven Islay single malts, but recently, one of the seven was bought out by a foreign buyer, and has refused to participate in the blending anymore. What’s available in bottles now is all that’s left.

The drink itself was Black Bottle 10-year Scotch, sweet vermouth and blackberries, as opposed to the version 1.0 offered on the menu, which had the same ingredients, but with blood orange instead of berries.